It has to be able to get 5 sockets in NM (through cube recipe), one-handed, and ideally with a speed above normal.
I know the very best option possible, probably only drops in Hell. But I’d rather not wait until then. I’m guessing the best option in NM must be pretty good as well, and the runes are not THAT hard to get so I may do it again if a better base drops in Hell.
Thanks!
For a NM zealot weapon I would not hold my breath for a specific runeword/base. The best options is a Divine Scepter with good mods to Fanta/Zeal/Holy Shield. But finding the right base is usually done on a different char while you are still planning the Zealot and not actually using it. I would just use what comes along. I had a Butchers Pupil drop for me mid nightmare which took me all the way to Hell. The best mid range weapon is what you have around, or just find a nice base and make it, don’t hold out of the best option, unless it drops for a diff char you are using.
I was in your spot. I was so focused on finding runes but the base is what really held me up. Then this morning I joined a game and a really cool guy gave me a phase blade with passion. I think a lucky drop or gambling is the only option other than trading or the generosity of strangers.
try for Black runeword in 3os Flail(Knout since zealer)
40% CB…15% ias…120% Enhanced dmg
Thul io nef
fairly cheap and should not be too difficulty finding someone willing to spare you a io rune(other than Black and White runewords the rune isn’t rly use for nything else)
great alternative if your luck to get a good base(Naga//Divine Scepter) dont happen…which honestly is very unlikely
Naga Quality lvl 48
Divine Scepter Quality ilvl 45
Knout ilvl quality 43
earliest for ilvl 43 is catacomb 3&4 only from A1 NM onward
earliest for ilvl 45…Far Oasis from Act 2(Sewer are ilvl 43)
earliest for ilvl 48 is Palace Cellar 3 onward(map just b4 Arc Sanc)
NM tombs probably the best spot to farm WHITE Divine Scepter//Naga…but the problem is…you have to do it solo for there…so though luck if u plan to keep on soloing
option 2…try to get “The Atlantean” by begging ppl for it XD…though the stats req to wear that is a little high :S 127 str 88 dex
200-250% ED
2 pally skills
50% AR
8 Vit
12 Dex
16 Str
Ancient sword ilvl 49…also findable in NM tombs…
well…NM Trav is an epic farm spot for exceptionnal Uniques but like…brutal
Divine Scepter 103 str req
Naga 121Str req
knout 82 str & 73 Dex req
Ancients Sword 127 Str 88 Dex req
Also, focusing on +skills doesn’t make much sense to me. At least Honor boosts all skills a bit. But in the long run, significantly better base weapon damage beats the small benefit I get from +skills. Since it’s the most important base stat, for skills and other mods to work from.
I don’t like having multiple offline chars, it sounds like a lot of extra work which is the same kind of time investment as it is to “hope for/hold my breath” a long time. But much more so. Especially as the other char would need to reach a lvl at least similar to my Paladin.
Nothing even remotely good in comparison comes along, for now. Haven’t even yet run into any on-handed weapons that do close to 41-63. Not to mention the other useful stats that Ironstone has.
And if something better but not too much better does show up, I’d like to know what the “best possible” is so I can judge if the jump is worth it for the mid-term at least. Hell is supposed to give me better stuff in everything after all, of course.
I picked Honor, also because its runes are not THAT hard to get and I already have them all. I play offline, and gambling never gives you bases. Only magical/unique/set/etc.
I wish it did.
About Black…
About Knout, I’ve run into a few. But nothing that would give me a base damage that would match or beat the displayed 41-63 dam my Ironstone Warhammer has.
For now, I solo quite fine. My Holy Freeze merc is not even that necessary. Offline plays means some of what you mention is not an option unless I start another char.
start a sorc or temporarily convert your pally to an hammerdin build if you wanna speed up your gains by 10X the speed…sorc more recommended due to teleport
Orb + Wall are great for solo play…Orb take priority to lvl
lvl 1-18…5 points warmth
18-29 full on lvling fire wall
30-60(Halt Firewall lvling)
10 point cold mastery
20 point orbs
10 point Ice Bolt
2 point Fire Mastery
61-80 work on Firewall and Fire mastery again
80-85…5 more point to warmth…85-90 finish lvling ice bolt
the skills quest should suffice to put 1 point in the skills requirement to unlock orbs//wall
technicly 1-23 you can build in Ice Blast then reset at Akara to shift toward the desired build…not doing that will give you some serious lvling issues during 1-18…and wall might be a tad weak b4 you hit lvl 23
5 socket superior divine scepter with 15% enhanced damage and +3 to each zeal, fanat, and holy shield
What’s the point of answering to a question for a better attack for a Zealot, if you suggest my char shouldn’t be a zealot or even a paladin? Sorry, but you’re literally changing the subject.
It’s like when people ask for a hardware suggestion for a low-end GPU with budget in mind, and someone suggests a highest-end one that’s 10x more expensive.
just suggesting a temporary swap…u still get to decide what ya do though
Great, thanks.
Just looked it up. Even without the +skills and the +15% dam, which I can live without, if its average damage applies, + the +160% dam of the Runeword, I’d be somewhere around 40-100. That’d be great.
And it’d be a fast weapon at least, not a normal one like my unique warhammer. I don’t know how much that improves my attack speed, but it should be significant along with everything that does.
Farming it looks like a tough deal, though. Best odds by far in NM, are all in bosses that have very large odds of dropping it as a non-base. Even with small or no MF.
Any way to solve that? I don’t put much faith in uniques/sets/rares, seeing as the odds of getting one of those that has all it needs to improve my gear without degrading my build… Are by now so small.
For example, I know my gloves+belt+circlet+boots are not the best. But they give me most or all of my speed to run and attack, leech, FHR and PLR. So, even large cool bonuses to big stats like dam and AR are not gonna make me change those.
act 3 Kurast zones and dungeons are probably your best bet atm, though you could spam trist for griswold and just ignore the trash
He’s easy enough to reach, and very easy to kill if I go back to Act 1. Indeed. I look at his odds, and they’re not that bad when you consider all that. 1:488. But I still see in the odds calculator, that he’ll most likely drop me a magical/unique/whatever version of it.
My +MF is only 25 right now, and I can go back to my previous shield for 0 MF without any risks on this. But that doesn’t improve my odds, according to the calculator.
Am I putting too much stock in the calculator, or is there something else here that makes it less than worth it?
Are you picking rares up? When I start a new season with a melee character, I always find rares with 200+ ED and good stats like max dmg, ias, lifesteal, etc.
I’ve fought my way clear through hell with rares on the majority of my item slots. Many rares can even be BiS, like jewelry, belts, gloves, or boots. Hell, even rare pally shields can outshine uniques. The best PVP pally shield is actually a rare with 2os and double ber.
And when it comes time to graduate into runewords, I’d go with an Oath on a zealot.
My current weapon is a unique, and right now I’m more diverse. Two runewords, two set items. But rares have been my foundation in bigger numbers, several times. All the rest of my current items are. Helm, rings, belt.
It’s logical to have at least some rares, as they’re the most common “lots of mods” items you can get through drops.
My current weapon is Ironstone. Best one-handed damage I could find. I think Diablo Normal dropped it. I’m not quite happy with the damage, and Honor looks better. But getting the base is always the trickiest part.
I started a new thread, where I ask about any possible cons for upgrading Ironstone with the cube recipe. If it became a Battle Hammer instead of a War Hammer, but kept everything else as the recipe seems to promise, I’d have about DOUBLE base dam. Add its original +120% dam, and all my skills, and that base dam multiplies quite nicely.
What do you think about that?
That’s a solid avenue, but your attack speed is quite horrid on battle hammers and legendary mallets. For example, without any added IAS, you’re only hitting 3 times per second with lvl 20 fanaticism while using zeal, even though the damage is great.
40 ias is pretty solid, allowing you to hit just over 4 times per second, but you don’t hit your max attacks per second (5.2) until 115 ias, lol.
If you can upgrade it, socket it, throw a sheal in it, and get 20 ias from somewhere else (gauntlets are probably the best choice) then you’ll probably be fine through NM, but you’ll still need something else for hell. That’s a super cheap way to do it too. I think it’s a good idea to help you out in NM, since it’s so cheap.
Honestly though, King’s Grace, Honor, Voice of Reason, and Passion are all better choices. I’d just upgrade Ironstone if you don’t yet have the runes or base for any of those.
I wouldn’t even worry too much about the “best” base, I’d just throw one of those in whatever exceptional weapon you can, as long as it isn’t a battle hammer, because they’re so slow. You’re going to eventually replace it anyway.
Hopefully, by the time you’re in hell, you can make an Oath.
I hear you, regarding the weapon’s base speed. But I do have a +30 IAS from other items. I keep both gloves and boots from Sagon set, because all their mods are great. That, + large life leech + some res and so.
Do you think my Ironstone will lose its socketed rune, if I use the recipe? I added a socket to it then put an Ort for lightning damage on an impulse, back in Act 5 Normal. Maybe I’ll even lose the socket?
Shael does sound pretty nice for a one-socket weapon. But either through recipes or drops, I only managed to get ONE Shael in the entire game thus far. And that went to Rhyme shield. Along with Lionheart armor, they’ve helped me cap all res (plus some other nice mods) in NM. So, worth it.
It WOULD be helpful have the Ironstone’s socket cleared it seems, in that respect. The dam improvement from Battle Hammer would outweigh the lightning dam loss, and an eventual Shael there would be great. Right?
I already am mostly physical damage, so it’s not like the 1-50 from Ort makes a sizeable difference for my elemental damage needs (which are few and far between). In any case, I’m thinking I’ll invest in Vengeance a bit eventually. For those that have too much resist or immunity to physical dam.
So:
First option right now, upgrade Ironstone through recipe. Will do so.
Second, get a base that’s decent enough for Honor runeword. That in itself is not that easy, as many weapons are either not suiting for my build or lack enough sockets.
And yeah, of course Hell will provide better options. I just wanna make NM truly count, and not wait until Hell for the next significant upgrade.
–
Thanks to both of you.